It’s difficult to blame Blake Bortles for giving up his senior season at Central Florida. After all, it was the right decision.

While Knights fans hoped the 6-foot-4, 230-pound quarterback would return after leading UCF to a stunning 52-42 victory over No. 6 Baylor in the Fiesta Bowl, Bortles really had nothing to gain by staying in school.

And he had everything to lose.

Bortles’ stock as one of the top two quarterbacks in the NFL Draft wouldn’t be any higher. Bill O’Brien is the new head coach at Houston, and he has a lasting memory of Bortles leading UCF to a 34-31 victory this past season when he was at Penn State.

If the Texans pass on Bortles, he won’t be available for long. Are you listening Jacksonville?

While the Knights have 10 starters returning on defense and a real opportunity to improve on their 12-1 season, being stuck in the American Athletic Conference will keep UCF off the national championship landscape. The new playoff system will focus on the major conferences.

That’s a shame because there are good players in some of the smaller conferences.